Team Springboard is calling for gardeners to give themselves and the planet a break on Earth Day - this year that's Tuesday April 22.
We're appealing for people to leave the lawn mower in the shed, put down the spade and set aside the pruning shears to help improve the habitats for plants and animals in the garden.
Opting out of activities that interfere with habitats can be a great way to help the wildlife in our garden from hedgehogs and birds to insects, frogs, micro-organisms and fungi.
Team Springboard’s horticultural manager Esther Kovacs said: “Lots of people have got used to cutting their lawn very short, cutting everything back to the max (or even worse taking out anything that’s alive and replacing it with plastic grass or concrete) - but we need to relearn that all of this will not only harm wildlife, but our physical and mental health too. Every little thing we do, or don’t do, adds up, and can start a green revolution! So leave your grass longer, or just leave a corner, or a swathe where you don’t touch, or a lot more rarely. Understand that if you want to help birds you also need to help them to have somewhere to nest (shrubs and trees generally), something to eat, and for that other creatures need habitats too. It is all connected - we are all connected.
“Every bit of green you don’t touch will provide more oxygen, take away more pollution, build more carbon in and reduces carbon dioxide from the air - so we can all breathe easier.
It will also have a huge impact on your mental health, and if nothing else convinces you - house prices are always higher in areas with more green.
“If you want to actively help, you can always grow a few more plants, even if it is a herb in a big pot on your front step, window sill or balcony, or go and find a green project near you and help them - any community garden or wildlife charity is great!.
“If you want birds in your garden don’t just put out feeders - grow trees and shrubs, provide habitat not just for the birds, but also for what they eat, don’t keep cutting back everything. All of this will also help to clear away pollutants and provide more oxygen, protect against too hot or cold weather, and will be great for your mental health!”
Team Springboard CIC is a not for profit community gardening organisation based on the Lake View Allotments in Allesley Old Road, Coventry. Team Springboard runs regular open gardening sessions and works with other not for profits to set up and run community gardens.
For more information visit www.teamspringboard.co.uk.
Seven things not to do this Earth Day:
Earth Day is on Tuesday April 22 in 2025. Earth Day, celebrated annually, marks the birth of the modern environmental movement.
We're appealing for people to leave the lawn mower in the shed, put down the spade and set aside the pruning shears to help improve the habitats for plants and animals in the garden.
Opting out of activities that interfere with habitats can be a great way to help the wildlife in our garden from hedgehogs and birds to insects, frogs, micro-organisms and fungi.
Team Springboard’s horticultural manager Esther Kovacs said: “Lots of people have got used to cutting their lawn very short, cutting everything back to the max (or even worse taking out anything that’s alive and replacing it with plastic grass or concrete) - but we need to relearn that all of this will not only harm wildlife, but our physical and mental health too. Every little thing we do, or don’t do, adds up, and can start a green revolution! So leave your grass longer, or just leave a corner, or a swathe where you don’t touch, or a lot more rarely. Understand that if you want to help birds you also need to help them to have somewhere to nest (shrubs and trees generally), something to eat, and for that other creatures need habitats too. It is all connected - we are all connected.
“Every bit of green you don’t touch will provide more oxygen, take away more pollution, build more carbon in and reduces carbon dioxide from the air - so we can all breathe easier.
It will also have a huge impact on your mental health, and if nothing else convinces you - house prices are always higher in areas with more green.
“If you want to actively help, you can always grow a few more plants, even if it is a herb in a big pot on your front step, window sill or balcony, or go and find a green project near you and help them - any community garden or wildlife charity is great!.
“If you want birds in your garden don’t just put out feeders - grow trees and shrubs, provide habitat not just for the birds, but also for what they eat, don’t keep cutting back everything. All of this will also help to clear away pollutants and provide more oxygen, protect against too hot or cold weather, and will be great for your mental health!”
Team Springboard CIC is a not for profit community gardening organisation based on the Lake View Allotments in Allesley Old Road, Coventry. Team Springboard runs regular open gardening sessions and works with other not for profits to set up and run community gardens.
For more information visit www.teamspringboard.co.uk.
Seven things not to do this Earth Day:
- Don’t mow the lawn- leave all or part of it to grow for insects and many other living things
- Don’t dig - put that spade away and help the microorganisms that live in the soil, plus don’t disturb the fungi and other networks connecting all plants - to help them stay healthier. If you need to add compost, spread it on top of the soil and let the worms, rain and gravity take it down.
- Don’t let rain water run down the drain - collect it for watering plants, or build a rain garden to soak it up
- Don’t tidy up piles of dead wood - they’re great for insects
- Don’t cut back all the bushes and shrubs in the garden. Let them grow as a habitat for birds
- Don’t cut back all the ivy in the garden- if it’s not weakening the host plant, leave it as a habitat for wildlife
- Don’t clear the leaves from garden borders and beds.They’ll break down over time and add nutrients to the soil.
Earth Day is on Tuesday April 22 in 2025. Earth Day, celebrated annually, marks the birth of the modern environmental movement.
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